Berkeley Cement, Inc. v. Regents of the Univ. of Cal.

*1137 Plaintiff Berkeley Cement, Inc. (Berkeley) appeals from the judgment entered against it after a jury trial in this dispute over construction of a building on the Merced campus of the University of California. Berkeley contends the jury's findings on the complaint and on the cross-complaint were fatally inconsistent; the trial court incorrectly instructed the jury that a particular specification in the parties' contract was a performance specification, rather than a design specification, based on an incorrect interpretation of the contract; the trial court improperly cut off plaintiff's cross-examination of a key witness before it was complete; the trial court improperly excluded relevant evidence on the issue of damages after holding a hearing on its admissibility; and the trial court erred in including expert witness fees and mediation fees in its award of costs to defendant. We conclude the expert witness fees were improperly included in the award of costs, but no other error in the judgment has been demonstrated. We modify the judgment to exclude the award of expert fees and affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Defendant Regents of the University of California…